You and God

You and God
The Prophet Isaiah wrote,
“A voice says, “Cry out.” And I said, “What shall I cry?” 
“All men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field. 
The grass withers and the flowers fall, because the breath of the LORD blows on them. Surely the people are grass. 
The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God stands forever.”Isaiah 40:6-8.
Over the years I’ve met people who have said Christianity will die out. That belief has been around for centuries. And yet here we are in the twenty-first century and people still believe in Christ Jesus. Not only that people are willing to lay down their life for what they believe.
There is a poem that goes,

“Last eve I passed beside a blacksmith's door,

And heard the anvil ring the vesper chime;

Then looking in I saw upon the floor

Old hammers, worn with beating of time

"How many anvils have you had said I, 

"To wear and batter all these hammers so?"

"Just one" said he, and then, with twinkling eye,

"the anvil wears the hammers out, you know."

And so, thought I, the anvil of God's word,

For ages skeptic blows have beat upon;

Yet though the noise of falling blows was heard,

The anvil is unharmed- the hammers gone."

                                                              Anonymous.

Thus the question I have for you is. Do you believe in God? Do you believe in the salvation that comes through belief in Christ Jesus?
I ask it because as far as I am concerned believing in God, believing in Christ Jesus is the most important thing a person can do.
C. S. Lewis said,
“Christianity, if false, is of no importance, and if true, of infinite importance. The only thing it cannot be is moderately important.” C. S. Lewis.
Belief in God is however is a very personal thing. Only you know what your relationship to God is.
So what is your relationship with God?
Please think about it.

Do you believe this?

Do you believe this?

“All men are like grass, 

and all their glory is like the flowers of the field.

The grass withers and the flowers fall, 

because the breath of the LORD blows on them. 

Surely the people are grass.

The grass withers and the flowers fall, 

but the word of our God stands forever.”

                                                    Isaiah 40:6-8

There is one statistic that every person living today will one day be a part of. The ultimate statistic. The ultimate statistic states that everyone that is born will one day die.
The American evangelist Tony Campolo made an interesting statement about death, he said,
“When you were born, you cried and everybody else was happy. The only question that matters is this - when you die, will you be happy when everybody else is crying?”Tony Campolo
Which begs the question dear reader do you know God?
Do you know where you will spend eternity?
For me as a Christian this is how I believe you get to heaven enter heaven.
Jesus said,
1/ “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.  For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”  John 3:16,17.
2/ “....I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” John 14:6
Jesus is the way to heaven.
 3/ The apostle Paul writing to the Romans said,
“for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.” Romans 3:23,24.
Sinning is falling short of what God wants for you life. Sin separates us from God.
4/ The apostle John noting,
“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.  
If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives.” 1 John 1:9,10.
5/ The apostle Paul make it clear salvation is not something we can work for. Paul writing to the Ephesians stating,
“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—  not by works, so that no one can boast.” Ephesians 2:8,9
6/ Ultimately salvation is an act of faith, Hebrews stating,
“And without faith it is impossible to please God,
 because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists 
and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him”Hebrews 11:6
Faith defined as by the writer of Hebrews as,

“Now faith is being sure of what we hope for 

and certain of what we do not see.” 

                                                Hebrews 11:1.

Do you believe this?
Please think about it.

Will you be happy?

Will you be happy?

“All men are like grass, 

and all their glory is like the flowers of the field.

The grass withers and the flowers fall, 

because the breath of the LORD blows on them. 

Surely the people are grass.

The grass withers and the flowers fall, 

but the word of our God stands forever.”

                                                    Isaiah 40:6b

Today as part of a photographic art project I’m doing I went to take pictures in a cemetery. It’s big, holding as many residents as the city where I live. Some grave stones go back to the late eighteen hundreds.
When I was young I lived in England near an Abby. At one time the richest in England. The grave stones in its cemetery  went back to the year 1200.
Cemeteries are places we put our loved ones. It’s the place our loved ones will place us one day when we become part of the ultimate statistic. The ultimate statistic being 100% of people die.
Which begs the question dear reader do you know God?
Do you know where you will spend eternity?
For me as a Christian this is how I believe you get to heaven enter heaven.
Jesus speaking about himself said,
1/ “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.  For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”  John 3:16,17.
The apostle John also quotes Jesus as saying,
2 “....I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” John 14:6
Jesus is the way to heaven.
 3/  The apostle Paul writing to the Romans said,
“for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.” Romans 3:23,24.
Sinning is falling short of what God wants for you life. Sin separates us from God. Jesus paid the price for our sins.
4/ The apostle John noting,
“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.  
If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives.” 1 John 1:9,10.
5/ The apostle Paul make it clear salvation is not something we can work for. Paul writing to the Ephesians stating,

“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—

and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—  

not by works, so that no one can boast.”

                                                        Ephesians 2:8,9

6/ Ultimately salvation is an act of faith, Hebrews stating,
“And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him” Hebrews 11:6
Faith defined as by the writer of Hebrews as,
“Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.” Hebrews 11:1
The American evangelist Tony Campolo made an interesting statement about death, he said,
“When you were born, you cried and everybody else was happy. The only question that matters is this - when you die, will you be happy when everybody else is crying?”Tony Campolo
Please think about it.
 

Place your bet

Place your bet

“A voice says, “Cry out.” And I said, “What shall I cry?” 

“All men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field. 

The grass withers and the flowers fall, 

because the breath of the LORD blows on them. 

Surely the people are grass. 

The grass withers and the flowers fall, 

but the word of our God stands forever.” 

                                               Isaiah 40:6-8.

You are grass and all of the glory you gain in this world are like the flowers of the field.
You grow old. You body strong in your youth slowly fades with age until you pass from this life.
All that you have done your achievements may be retained in the memory of those who loved you. Or, if you are lucky, in history books or on some stone pillar, even on the internet. Still even those achievements will one day be forgotten.
The writer of Ecclesiastes writing from a human prospective wrote,
“I denied myself nothing my eyes desired; I refused my heart no pleasure. My heart took delight in all my work, and this was the reward for all my labor. 
Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun.”  Ecclesiastes 2:10,11.
The writer was right. If we look at things from the point of view of this world life is meaningless. If all we are here to do is produce the next generation and gather a few bangles bobbles and beads then isn’t life meaningless.
There however is more to being human. The way I see it is human beings are eternal beings destined to live throughout eternity and a place of our choosing.
In creating humans God did not make robots. He created individuals with a freewill to do as they wished. That freewill extends to our belief in God. Which by God’s design comes down to an act of faith. The writer of Hebrews telling us,

“And without faith it is impossible to please God,

 because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists 

and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.” 

                                                                  Hebrews 11:6

Of faith, of belief, Blaise Pascal wrote,
“Belief is a wise wager. Granted that faith cannot be proved, what harm will come to you if you gamble on its truth and it proves false? If you gain, you gain all; if you lose, you lose nothing. Wager, then, without hesitation, that He exists. Blaise Pascal.
Thus the question becomes,
Where do you place your bet?
Please think about it.

Faith

Faith

“A voice says, “Cry out.” And I said, “What shall I cry?” 

“All men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field. 

The grass withers and the flowers fall, 

because the breath of the LORD blows on them. 

Surely the people are grass. 

The grass withers and the flowers fall, 

but the word of our God stands forever.” 

                                                                    Isaiah 40:6-8.

There is one thing we all know. We will not get out of this life alive. I however do not believe life ends in death. I believe human beings are eternal beings. Beings created by God to have fellowship with Him.
For me if there is no life after death. If this life is all we have it’s a waste of time. The writer of Ecclesiastes states,
“I denied myself nothing my eyes desired; I refused my heart no pleasure. My heart took delight in all my work, and this was the reward for all my labor. 
Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun.” Ecclesiastes 2:10,11.
Someone one once said to me,

“life’s a game and he who has all the toys in the end wins”

Nothing could be further from the truth for at the end of this life you can take nothing with you. All you have accumulated in this life will be divided up and given to others.
The only thing you take with you to the next life is your faith in God.
The writer of Ecclesiastes tells us,
“Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole  duty  of man. 
For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil.”Ecclesiastes 12:13,14.
The writer of Hebrews tells us,

“And without faith it is impossible to please God, 

because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists 

and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.” 

                                                         Hebrews 11:6.

The apostle Paul writes,
“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—  not by works, so that no one can boast.” Ephesians 2:8,9.
I as a Christian believe God has made things as simple as possible for individuals to get to heaven. God has even gone as far as to enter into the world he created in the form of His one and Only Son Jesus Christ.
The apostle John referring to Jesus as “the Word” said,
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  
He was with God in the beginning. 
Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.  
In him was life, and that life was the light of men....
The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” John 1:1-4,14.
John also making it clear,
“Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God—  children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.” John 1:12,13 
As I said the key to eternal life with God is faith. The writer of Hebrews telling us,

“Now faith is being sure of what we hope for 

and 

certain of what we do not see.” 

                                       Hebrews 11:1.

Do you believe in God?

Please think carefully about it.

A Choice

A Choice
James the half brother states,
“Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.”  
Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.  
Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.”  
As it is, you boast and brag. All such boasting is evil.  
Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn’t do it, sins.” James 4:13-17. 
Isaiah the Prophet wrote,
“A voice says, “Cry out.” And I said, “What shall I cry?” 
“All men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field. 
The grass withers and the flowers fall, because the breath of the LORD blows on them. Surely the people are grass. 
The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God stands forever.”Isaiah 40:6-8.
We as they say are mere mortals. Our life in this world begins at conception and ends a handful of years later. We do not know how long we will live, nor can we predict the future.
The only thing that is certain is one day we will enter eternity. At that time we will stand before God whether you believe in him or not.
Tony Campolo the American evangelist said,
“When you were born, you cried and everybody else was happy. The only question that matters is this - when you die, will you be happy when everybody else is crying?” Tony Campolo.
Will you?
The cry of Jesus to all humanity is,
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  
Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  
For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30.
Jesus speaking of himself said,
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.  
For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.” John 3:16,17.
Ultimately the choice is up to you the individual. You can believe Jesus is all he said he is, the Son of God, the Saviour of mankind or you can reject him.
When God created mankind, He did not make robots that would always do what he wanted them to do without thinking.
Quite the opposite. God created each individual with a freewill to do as he or she wished. That freewill extends to believing in Him or not. Thus you have the right to say God doesn’t exist.
That being said, Blaise Pascal wrote,
“Belief is a wise wager. Granted that faith cannot be proved, what harm will come to you if you gamble on its truth and it proves false? If you gain, you gain all; if you lose, you lose nothing. Wager, then, without hesitation, that He exists. Blaise Pascal.
Please think about it.

Belief in God

Belief in God
Isaiah the Prophet wrote,

“A voice says, “Cry out.” 

And I said, “What shall I cry?” 

“All men are like grass,

 and all their glory is like the flowers of the field. 

The grass withers and the flowers fall, because the breath of the LORD blows on them. 

Surely the people are grass. 

The grass withers and the flowers fall, 

but the word of our God stands forever.” 

                                                       Isaiah 40:6-8.

The Psalmist writes,

“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; 

all who follow his precepts have good understanding. 

To him belongs eternal praise.” 

                                         Psalm 111:10

The writer of Proverbs states,

“Do not be wise in your own eyes; 

fear the LORD and shun evil.” 

                                         Proverbs 3:7.

Not surprising the Bible that was written to believers in God, believes there is an almighty eternal God that we should trust and worship.
By contrast there are those in the world who say there is no God.
To my way of thinking someone who thinks there is no God, is someone who thinks they are all knowing or fails to look around them and see the facts.
A believer in God can say as the Psalmist does,

“The heavens declare the glory of God; 

the skies proclaim the work of his hands.” 

                                              Psalm 19:1.

A believer in God can point to science and say that the universe from the largest galaxy to the smallest subatomic particle and everything in between is so perfectly in tune with each other that it allows life as we know it to exist.
To say the universe simply assembled itself out of chaos caused by the big bang is if you think about it a great leap of faith.
Those of us who believe in God can actually point to the big bang and say God used it to create the universe. After all the Bible states,

“In the beginning God created 

the heavens and the earth.” 

                                 Genesis 1:1.

To me as a Christian, God starting the universe with the “big bang” as scientist call it seems logical. How long it took to get from the moment of creation to where we are today is immaterial to my faith.
It matters little to my faith if the universe as we know it was created by God over billions of years or in six twenty-four hour days.
The fact is I believe God exists and that He created the heavens and the earth. To say otherwise does not make sense to me.
And I believe good science is on my side.
The choice however is up to you the reader for ultimately there is a faith factor in believing in God. Just as there is a faith factor is saying God does not exist.
No one living to day was there on the day of creation thus we have,
1/ The Bible telling us there is a God.
2/ The Bible stating, “in the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.”
3/ Science telling us that the universe had a beginning.
4/ Science indicating that the universe is precisely tuned to allow life as we know it to exist.
The choice however is up to you the reader. That being said consider this. Blaise Pascal wrote this about believing in God. He said,
“Belief is a wise wager. Granted that faith cannot be proved, what harm will come to you if you gamble on its truth and it proves false? If you gain, you gain all; if you lose, you lose nothing. Wager, then, without hesitation, that He exists.” Blaise Pascal.
Please think about it.

You are like Grass

You are like grass

“A voice says, “Cry out.” And I said, “What shall I cry?” 

“All men are like grass, 

and all their glory is like the flowers of the field. 

The grass withers and the flowers fall,

 because the breath of the LORD blows on them. 

Surely the people are grass. 

The grass withers and the flowers fall, 

but the word of our God stands forever.” 

Isaiah 40:6-8

Our life on this earth is but a momentary mist in eternity. The moment we are born we start to die. Ultimately all we have materially in this life will one day be left to others while we go to stand before God.
Tony Campolo the American Evangelist asks this question a question we should all ask ourselves. He asks,
“When you were born, you cried and everybody else was happy. The only question that matters is this - when you die, will you be happy when everybody else is crying?”Tony Campolo
So my question to you the reader is,
  “When you meet God will you meet Him as your Lord and Saviour or as your judge?”
You can know here and now where you will sped eternity.
The apostle Paul writes,
“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—  not by works, so that no one can boast.” Ephesians 2:8,9.
We get to heaven by the grace of God.
As a follower of Jesus Christ I believe this is the way you get to heaven,
It come down to who you think Jesus is and what his purpose on this earth was for. The writer of Hebrews tells us,
“In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways,  but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe.  
The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.” Hebrews 1:1-3 

Jesus said of himself,

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, 

that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.  

For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world,

 but to save the world through him.” 

John 3:16,17.

Jesus speaking to his disciples also said,

Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. 

No one comes to the Father except through me.”  John 14:6

  Paul writing to the Romans said,

“for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,

 and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.”

 Romans 3:23,24.

Sinning is falling short of what God wants for you life. Sin separates us from God.
  The apostle John noting,

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins 

and purify us from all unrighteousness.  

If we claim we have not sinned, 

we make him out to be a liar

 and his word has no place in our lives.” 

1 John 1:9,10.

Paul make it clear salvation is not something we can work for. Paul writing to the Ephesians stating,

“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith

and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God

 not by works, so that no one can boast.”  

 Ephesians 2:8,9

Ultimately salvation is an act of faith, Hebrews stating,

“And without faith it is impossible to please God, 

because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists 

and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him”

Hebrews 11:6

Faith defined as,

“Now faith is being sure of what we hope for 

and certain of what we do not see.” 

 Hebrews 11:1

What do you believe?
Please think about it.